KPJ Healthcare Berhad

KPJ eyeing Terengganu, Melaka next

KPJ Healthcare Bhd targets Terengganu and Melaka as the next two states in Malaysia to set up its hospital operations.

KPJ Healthcare Bhd targets Terengganu and Melaka as the next two states in Malaysia to set up its hospital operations. That will leave Perlis as the only state without the presence of Malaysia's leading healthcare operator.

"Eventually, we will have a hospital in every state in Malaysia," said KPJ managing director Amirudin Abdul Satar last Friday. Currently, KPJ's network consists of 21 hospitals in 11 states and the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, as well as two in Indonesia.

Amirudin said KPJ is waiting for the right opportunity to move into Terengganu and Melaka.

According to a source familiar with the company, potential hospital locations in Melaka include Alor Gajah and Ayer Keroh, both growing townships with easy access to the state capital.

Speaking to reporters during the Invest Malaysia 2013 capital market conference, Amirudin said the group is exploiting multiple avenues to increase revenue growth.

"I expect this year we will continue to perform positively due to the opening of two new specialist centres and added capacity in some of our hospitals," he said, noting that KPJ's international expansion will be driven by acquisitions instead of building new facilities from the ground up.

"We have the ambition for a greater presence in Indonesia and our Asean neighbours. But we prefer not to go through the difficulties of constructing new hospitals in foreign lands," he said.

The private healthcare provider has made strong inroads regionally, with its two Indonesian hospitals recording RM22.1 million in revenue last year. This was a 92% hike from the RM11.5 million recorded in 2011.

The company also saw good contribution from Jeta Garden, its upscale retirement and aged care resort in Australia, which generated RM30.8 million in revenue for 2012 against RM6.6 million the previous year.

KPJ group reported revenue of RM2.1 billion for the 2012 financial year ended Dec 31. Net profit was RM146.79 million.

Amirudin said KPJ, which is expected to open four new specialist hospitals in Malaysia within the next two years, plans to attract more foreign patients to Malaysia in the future.

It is actively promoting its services to international clients via strategic marketing efforts, such as advertisements at international airports.

"We hope to play a significant role in promoting Malaysia as a medical hub for patients around the region," said Amirudin, who added that the number of foreign patients under KPJ's care grew by 6% last year. They contributed approximately RM57 million or 3% of KPJ's total revenue last year.